6TH EDITION (BAUMAN)
250 ORIGINAL EXAM-STYLE PRACTICE QUESTIONS • CHAPTERS 1–27
Questions begin immediately. Each item has four answer choices; the correct choice is marked with a large green ✓ inside an empty box.
CHAPTER 1: A Brief History of Microbiology
1. Which scientist is credited with observing and describing microorganisms using handcrafted lenses?
• Joseph Lister
■✓ Antoni van Leeuwenhoek
• Robert Koch
• Louis Pasteur
2. The germ theory of disease states that many diseases are caused by what?
• Changes in weather
• Spontaneous generation
• Inherited weakness
■✓ Specific microorganisms
3. Pasteur's swan-neck flask experiments primarily challenged which idea?
• Taxonomic hierarchy
■✓ Spontaneous generation
• Natural selection
• Cell theory
4. Koch's postulates were developed to help establish what relationship?
• Antibodies and vaccination
■✓ A specific microbe and a specific disease
• Fungi and photosynthesis
• Viruses and antibiotics
5. Joseph Lister is closely associated with the introduction of what into surgery?
■✓ Antiseptic techniques
• Electron microscopy
• DNA sequencing
• Vaccination against smallpox
6. Vaccination against smallpox was pioneered by whom?
• Paul Ehrlich
• Alexander Fleming
• Robert Hooke
■✓ Edward Jenner
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,7. The Golden Age of Microbiology was characterized by major advances in what?
• Using electron microscopes only
• Discovering antibiotics only
■✓ Identifying microbes and their roles in disease
• Sequencing genomes only
8. Which process did Pasteur demonstrate to be caused by microorganisms?
■✓ Fermentation
• Nitrogen fixation
• Endocytosis
• Photosynthesis
9. The term biogenesis refers to the principle that life arises from what?
■✓ Preexisting life
• Nonliving matter alone
• Sunlight
• Chemical elements only
10. Which scientist is associated with the discovery of penicillin?
• Francesco Redi
• Robert Koch
• Ignaz Semmelweis
■✓ Alexander Fleming
11. The smallest unit of an element that retains its chemical properties is a(n) what?
■✓ Atom
• Molecule
• Organelle
• Cell
12. A bond formed by sharing electrons is a what?
■✓ Covalent bond
• Hydrogen bond
• Ionic bond
• Peptide bond
13. Water is polar because electrons are shared how?
• Not at all
■✓ Unequally
• Equally
• Only by hydrogen
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,14. A solution with a pH below 7 is generally what?
• Neutral
• Isotonic
• Basic
■✓ Acidic
15. Proteins are polymers built primarily from what monomers?
• Fatty acids
• Monosaccharides
■✓ Amino acids
• Nucleotides
16. DNA and RNA are composed of repeating units called what?
■✓ Nucleotides
• Peptides
• Amino acids
• Triglycerides
17. The major role of enzymes in cells is to do what?
■✓ Lower activation energy
• Store oxygen
• Supply genetic information
• Destroy ATP
18. A dehydration synthesis reaction generally does what?
• Adds electrons only
• Destroys covalent bonds only
■✓ Joins molecules while removing water
• Splits molecules using water
19. Which organic macromolecule is a major component of cell membranes?
• Proteins only
• Mineral salts
• Nucleic acids
■✓ Lipids
20. ATP is especially important because it functions as what?
• A cell wall polymer
■✓ An energy-transfer molecule
• A pigment
• A structural polysaccharide
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, 21. Which structure is present in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells?
■✓ Ribosomes
• Mitochondria
• Golgi apparatus
• Nucleus
22. The primary function of the plasma membrane is to what?
• Digest DNA
• Produce spores
■✓ Control movement of substances into and out of the cell
• Store chromosomes
23. Bacterial cell walls commonly contain what unique polymer?
• Cellulose
• Glycogen
■✓ Peptidoglycan
• Chitin
24. Which organelle is the major site of aerobic ATP production in eukaryotes?
• Lysosome
■✓ Mitochondrion
• Nucleolus
• Ribosome
25. The nucleoid of a bacterium contains primarily what?
• Cellulose fibers
• Antibodies
■✓ Chromosomal DNA
• ATP granules
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